Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 512 — page 23: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

en eee ae ae The young couple standing under the stars, looked at one another a moment without speak- 1D . e what will Gideon Goldbar do?’ asked the girl, after a look toward a certain cabin, in the one window of which she had lately seen a bright light. ‘‘ Of course he knows all?” ‘* He knowsall, and he is going to stick.” ‘With the camp against him? It is folly!” ‘With the code, you mean, Opal?” ‘in a case of this kind, camp and code are one.” Norgan the assayer touched her arm, ‘* Let us walk away—toward your house,” he went on with a smile, and then he continued, lowering his voice. ‘* As I have said, Mona’s shadow is going to stay. He and his man John- ny Jumpup have been given three hours in which to quit Satan City. Already the first hour is on the wane. The time will expire be- fore midnight. I have just come from the aliens,” ‘* From Captain Velvet and his pard?” ‘Yes. Mona’s sleuth has made a discovery, new to him to some extent, but old to us.” ** What is that?” ‘* He has met the Queen of Darkness,” Opal drew back without moving out of her tracks, and looked at the chemist. ‘* He met her pretty much as Johnny Jumpup did in the heart of Mine No. 3, His agility and superior strength overcame the woman, and he forced from her a wonlerful story which I dare not tell you here. You told me, Opal, that the figure you saw fly at Nicol Macbeth the Gold Goth was not a man, and I was inclined to laugh at you. I know now that the Goth was killed by the Queen of Darkness, about whom Boss Nevada raved when the mad fit was on, and not. by Dun Duff, who was shot for the murder by the Goth in the saddle.” ‘The gold tramps would not have believed me had I told them this,” observed the girl. ‘*'You would have been laughed at for your pains, and it is well that you kept silence. We will not talk apout what Gideon Goldbar ex- tracted from the tenantof the mine; neither does it matter nov who the woman is. We have a course—one sure one—before us.” ‘* And that is, Norgan—” : * Flight!” The chemist pronounced the word with his eyes fixed on the fair creature before him, She made no reply. ‘Captain Velvet has not counseled this,” be continued. ‘‘He knows ae whatever of my decision, I am doing what I[ think best for ou, ** And for yourself, too, I trust.” ‘* Don’t think of me,” he rejoined, with a light laugh. ‘“‘Lam only Norgan, a chip on the sea of fate. There is to be another mandate on the heels of the first,’’ ‘* From Captain Duff?” ‘*From the man who has played the coolest game ever played in California.” ** Will they obey?” asked Opal, quickly. ‘The miners, girl?” ** Will they obey the mandates of this prince of devils?” ‘* You forget their oath of allegiance. You overlook the fact that before them all Colonel Bluff proclaimed Dun Duff master, and called on all to honor him as such, You were not made to take that terrible oath, nor to write your name to the Coie of No Man’s Ground in your owu blcod. We trusted you without this part of the ceremony. The men will obey Dun Duff, Some of them are desperadoes, but they are not traitors. A change of masters is nothing to them so long as Colonel Bluff sanctions it,” ‘‘ But does he do this, Norzan? Isn’t there a spell over him? Isn’t he a puppet in the hands of Dun Duff, who is playing for high stakes?” _ * Dare you tell them this, girl?’ Opal lost color and seemed to shrink away, * No, I dare not,” said she. ‘‘ But they may force some things from me if they let themselves be hoodwinked too far.” | They were near the girl’s cabin now, and Norgan released the arm to let ber in, ‘You have not answered me about my propo- sition,” observed he, ; ‘‘ About the flight? If there is nothing left but this—nothing a shade better, mind you—I consent,” : ‘ ‘“‘] promise you that nothing better is left!” Then the door opened and shut, and Norgan the assayer walked off with a thoughtful step, that made no noise as he passed along. With amind filled with the strangest emo- tions, the waif of No Man’s Ground began to prepare for the journey into the unknown. The little cabin had been her home for years, Around it she had passed her girlhood, and had developed into a womanhood calculated to im- press and fascinate the most cynical, She knew nothing about herself more than she had told Colonel Bluff, and the extent of this information was, as we know, that she was Opal—nothing more, _ Of course the paper discovered in the Mexican button taken from Boss Nevada’s hand, bad fill- ed her mind with the thought that she might be @ person with a history, and when Gideon Gold- bar told her that he was Mona’s sleuth-hound, ened for awhile. But now amid the accumulating excitement, all was chaos again, Colonel Bluff had come to No Man’s Ground despite his helpless legs, Boss Nevada had gone away, perhaps never to return, and there was a new master over all—a man who loved to play coolly a game fit only for the coolest of hea Opal hoped she would not be disturbed while she made preparations for flight with Norgan, who had resolved to break the code in order to get beyond the approaching scenes of excite- ment, As we have said, she had not much to take away. She had come to No Man’s Ground with noth- ing, and in going off she would not be rich, P suddenly Opal heard a noise beyond the win- ow. . It was the unmistakable tread of a miner’s oot. Indignant at the thought that she was watch- ed, she sprung up from ber work and went for- ward, There was no one at the window then, and Opal’s hand fell on the latch, Just then she heard the same voice she had heard once before since sundown. **Ob, ve! Ob, ye! Oh, ye! Under section one hundred of the Code of No Man’s Ground, the master, Duncan Duff, forbids any citizen from quitting Satan City without authority, on penn of sentence under the laws of the domain. set all who hear obey the command, Longe live the master, and death to the violators of the code!” The gir) in the cabin heard the proclamation with blanched cheeks and bated breath. Her band fell from the latch and she went back ward, the last words ringing in her ears, ‘“It is too late—too late!” she cried. ‘' The hand of Dun Duff has fastened on me, In God’s name, there can be but one meaning to this infamy! Iam to become bis wife, or worse, if bis villainy can make me so, Who told him that I contemplated flight? What traitor bas be- trayed me into his power?” For several moments the young girl stood like a statue, with the lamplight revealing the de- spair which had settled over her face. ‘“*T could appeal, but I would thus reveal my designs and _ betray Norgan,” she suddenly ex- claimed, ‘1 will not face Colonel Bluff again. The Crippled Croesus, who bas allowed himself to be ‘spelled’ by Dun Duff, has eyes I do not like. There are now two alternatives before me—one to stay, and let the man of cunning have his way; the other to defy the code, and Opal stood undecided a while longer, then she suddenly stooped and picked up the little bundle she had recently deposited on the table, **Come what may, I remain!” she cried, throwing the bundle across the room and watch- ing it alight in one corner. ‘‘ [ may be choosing wrongly, but with the be? of Heaven I will fight out the battle where am. The time may come—” “The time has come!” cried a voice, as the door was burst open, and Opal fell back with a startled cry as she saw Colonel Bluff drag him- self across the sill. ‘‘In Heaven’s name, why do you stay bere one minute? More than your life is at stake. They can’t make me obey them in every particular. I will not! Turn your back on No Man’s Ground, Get away from the touch of the man who made me whatI am, Go to your mother, girl.” **'To my mother?” cried Opal, starting toward him, with Lis body resting on his hands and raised half-way from the floor. ‘*To your mother! Go to na, of Sacra- mento, and tell her that your father, Colonel Bluff, sent you to her !” It was a frightened look that shone from Opal’s eyes, and her voice was a cry as she recoiled from the Crcesus, CHAPTER XXX. THE EVE OF DEATH. It is no wonder that the waif of No Man’s Ground stared at the man from whose mouth burst this terrible and unexpected revelation. Colonel Bluff the crippled nabob her father? It was something which she had never dreamed of, and the announcement coming when it did, was enough to render her speech- ess, Opal did not know what to do, and so she kept away, but looked at the form on the floor with doubt and borror mingled in her eyes. ‘You don’t believe me. Ha! ba! I thought you would nct,” laughed Colonel Bluff. “I saw your mother as she looked years ago when I placed you in the light in Lola’s cabiv. Again repeat my warning, away. Don’t let the light of the day find you in Satan City,” “Bat the proclamation? You forget that!” exclaimed the gir] starting toward him. ‘IT have heard it,” answered he. ‘‘ They are going to enforce Section 100, which I wrote with my own hands. You are forbidden to quit . Eilve did he know I had thought of going?” ‘You don’t know the man who calls himself eee * _ we ne. en oe ee ‘.¢ 24 ee oh iF (rrr A LE the same thought took new root and flourished | Dun Duff. Ido, alas! Don’t question mc, girl. Go!” She could not leave him without putting the question that rose to ber lips, “Tf you are my father, why does Mona sit alone in darkness, sending out sleuths all the time? Why haven't vou helped her?” He seemed to fall back from these words, but his eyes did not leave her. ‘*The barrier!—tbe crime! you know nothing about it,” he exclaimed, ‘‘ But somebody has told you something about Mona, your mother, Who did this?” His last words were a demand, ‘*Never mind,” rejoined Opal who burried] resolved not to betray Gideon Goldbar. ‘* know something about Mona.” ‘Your mother! By the heaven above us, child, she bears that relation to you! But you linger here. You must go! Don’t think that your duty is to stay with me because of the con- fession I have made. lam going back now, [I bave crawled over the ground ike a wounded snake to give you warning.” ‘ae \ iat to the door and dragged himself to the sill. ‘Why bave you given Dun Duff this author- ity?’ cried the girl at his side. ‘* You don’t— ou can't know the cool cunning of the man. hy— He held up one of his hands to stop her, ‘*T wish the wretch was roasting on a spit in Tartarus!” he hissed, ‘“*I could kill bim with the same grace that I would finish a mountain lion clawing at my throat, Don’t 1 know that Dun Duff wants the millions of No Man’s Ground? Ah! girl, he will not stop there, And yet I, a crippled coward, have consented to put all the weapons into his hands. Don’t stop me again. The game will be played out, and the day of vengeance will dawn before long. I must wait. But I want to see you slip from the grasp of that devil of devils. Once more, go!” Opal did not feel like detaining the strange man any longer. She saw bim craw] across the threshold with a final look back at her, and then the door sbut, and be was gone. A curiosity which she could not keep down took her to the window, and for several mo- ments she gazed in silence at the object that passed over the ground Jike a wolf dragging a pair of broken legs to his den. She wondered if he would beable to perform the journey unobserved, and when ske thought of the man who had made himself master of No Man’s Ground by his undaunted coolness and audacity she feared that the Crippled Croesus would be caught, But Colonel Bluff was not seen.’ Fortune seemed to favor bis purpose, for he reached his quarters unobserved, and threw nycneet upon the cot with an exclamation of tri- umph., ‘* Under no other circumstances would I have told her a word!” hecried. ‘Ihave paid you back in part, Dun Duff. The maimed wolf yet possesses his teeth, and you must be careful if he does not outwind you!” After awhile he dragged himself to the cabin door, which he opened, and looked out, Beyond the Square be saw the open portal of Shasta Sam’s saloon, and bis eyes seemed to catch fire as he watched the spot a little while. “It isn’t much of a crawl—no further than it was to her,” he muttered, ‘‘ If I was sure he wouldn’t be there I could reach the place end turn the tables. Yes, I could reverse the orders, and in a moment,] could throw the pards of No Man’s Ground on him like a pack of lions.” “Looking out, eh, Colonel?” cried a voice at that moment, and Colonel Bluff drew back from the figure which appeared at the door, His face instantly became white, and the faugh that followed the salutation did not bring the color back. Dun Duff had come! ‘* Well, the three hours are passing array Ke continued the cool-bead, as he entered the ca in and leaned against the table, folding his arms and looking quietly down upon the man who bad crept back to the cot, ‘t They baven’t made the slightest move as yet, and it looks like he intends to defy the code.’ Bf. een Goldbar, you mean?” said Colonel uff. ‘*Of course. I gave them three hours to get away. Section 101 allows no aliens in camp nor anywhere within the domain. This man seems to want to test the code. Well, be can do so,” There was a quiet but a terrible emphasis in the last sentence which the cripple noticed. ‘*How much time has he left?’ ‘One bour.” “Tf he remains, what?” ‘* The code will be obeyed! Jam master here, T have the men firmly at my back. You have proclaimed me Captain of the League, and that is enough for them. At the end of an hour I shall order Gideon Goldbar and his man under arrest, and to-morrow will see the corpses of the fools oa the Plaza,” ‘** You intend to show no mercy?” “Why should I? Iintend to rule! They do not know who they are dealing with. The sleuth from the South will die with bis ‘ hand*® JOO com Ss: G (G